Folding chair



` A. E. PULS FoLDNG CHAIR Feb. 8, 1938.

Filed NOV. 5, 1935 ATTORNEY.

' Patented Feb. s, 193s UNITED* STATES PATENT O F FICE FoLmNoonAm Alfred E. Puls, Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to Metropolis Bending Company, Metrcpolis,flll., a corporation of yIllinois Y Application November 3 Claims.

This invention relates to'foldingchairs and has Ibr its' general object to provide a chair of this type which is simple in construction and inexpensive of production, which is capable of foldlng into a minimum of space with the absence of projecting parts, and which can be manufactured r and soldat a comparatively low price.

Y Other and more limited objects and particular advantages of my invention will appear in the detailed description hereof and will be covered, in their essential combinations, in the claims appended hereto.

Referring to the drawing, Fig. l shows a vertical sectional view through a chair constructed in accordance with my invention, showing the Ypositionsoccupied by the parts when the chair is openedor unfolded; Fig. 2 a detail in sectional elevation corresponding to the line 2 2 of Fig. 1; Fig.f3 a detail in section corresponding to the line 3--73 of Fig. i; and Fig. 4 a detail in section corresponding to the line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Describing the parts by reference characters, I, I denote the side frame members, the lower Vrportions of said members constituting the front v.legs la. 2 denotes the rear legs which are pivoted to the upper portions of the side frame members, as indicated at 3. V4 denotes an upper transverse member of the chair back having its ends secured in the upper ends .of the side members I and provided with. a slot IIa extending up- Y wardly from the lower surface thereof andproviding a seat for the upper edge of the interme- V diate back member 5, the lower edge of which is termediate member 5.

' Pins 1, which are secured to opposite ends of the bottom members are mounted in slots 2D ex- Ytending longitudinally of the rear legs, adjacent .which supports a seat proper, 9.

to the pivoted upper ends of the latter.

8 denotes a seat frame which mayv be generally rectangular in outline, as shown herein, and I0 denotes a rod extending through the sides of the seat frame and mounted at its ends in the side members I. It will be noted from Fig. 3 that the seat frame is retained in non-sliding relation with reference to the rod IE and the front legs i by means of the lugs Il!a which are struckfrom the rod, after its insertion into the openings provided therefor in the sides of the seat frame and ,after the washers Il have been placed adjacent to the sides of the frame. This construction 5, 1935, seria-1 No.'48,357

serves to eliminate the cost oi spacing sleeves between the sides of the frame and the iront legs and to prevent movement of the seat frame longitudinally of the rod.

I2 denotes angular brackets which are secured to the under side of the seat frame adjacent to the rear thereof. As shown herein, the brackets are secured to opposite ends of the rear member of the frame and comprise vertical arms which extendabove said member, being provided with openings I2a for the reception of a rod I3, which extends across the rear of the frame, being shown as located above the rear member, at the rear of the seat proper, 9. The opposite ends oi the rod are mounted in the longitudinal slots 2c in the rear legs.

The lowerl portions of the front legs are shown as connected by transverse braces Ib and the lower portions of the rear legs as connected by transverse braces 2d.

Ihe intermediate back member 5 is preferably made of material capable of flexing whereby, when the seat is folded upwardly, thereby moving the lower cross member 6 forwardly, this flexibility Will enable the lower back rail to be moved back and forth by the folding of the seat without th-e necessity for making the slot la of greater Width than the thickness of the top of the said intermediate member. In order to prevent the upper end of the member 5 from being pulled out of the slotted seat 4a, I have applied to such upper end a pair of L-shaped metallic fastening members I4, the bottoms of said members being preferably secured to the back of the member 5,

as by rivets I5, and the upper leg Iiia of each fastening member overhanging the top edge of the member 5 and being preferably of the same length as the thickness of said member. ,Pins IS are then ydriven through vthe cross member 4 and through the upper end of the member 5 and through the fastening members I4 immediately beneath the upper legs lll@L thereof. By this construction, the back member 5 is held securely within the slotted seat 4a and cannot be dislodged therefrom, either by pressure exerted against the member 5 by the backs of occupants of the chair, or by the strain exerted due to the folding and unfolding of the chair seat.

' From the foregoing description, taken with the drawing, it is believed that the advantages of my construction will be readily understood. When the seat is folded upwardly from the position shown in Fig. 1, the back, the rear legs, and the seat occupy but little more space than the Width of the sidemembers. The location of the rod I3 enables it to extend across the rear end of the seat frame and to strengthen the latter, particularly where the weight of the occupant of the chair is exerted forwardly of the seat pivot rod IQ. Its location back of the seat proper, in the position shown, preventsit from being readily observed.

It will be apparent, from the foregoing description, that the chair shown and described herein is extremely simple of construction and inexpensive cf production. It is also efficient in operation and is capable of being folded within a small and compact space.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is: i

1. A folding chair comprising side members, the lower portions of which constitute front legs, an upper back member connecting the upper ends of the side members and having an upwardly extending groove at its lower edge, an intermediate back member having its upper edge mounted within the said groove, one or more L-shaped metallic fastening devices secured to the upper end of the intermediate back member and each having an upper leg overhanging the upper edge of said intermediate member, fastening means extending through the upper back member and through the fastening device below and adjacent to theA upper leg thereof, a lower transverse back member to which the intermediate back member is secured, rear legs pivotally connected to the side members above the lower back member, the rear legs being provided` with longitudinal slots,

the lower back member having projections entering said slots, a chair seat pivoted to the side members below the pivotal connection of the rear legs with said side members and a sliding connection between the rear portion of said chair seat and said rear legs.

2. In a folding chair, the combination of side members the lower portions of which constitute front legs, rear legs pivoted'at their upper ends to the upper portions of said side members, a back interposed between the upper portions of said side members and having the opposite sides of its lower end Slidably connected to the rear legs, a seat frame having front, side and rear members, means pivotally connecting the side members of said frame to the front legs, angle brackets secured to the lower surface of the rear member of said frame, one at each end thereof, each bracket having a vertical portion extending above the top of the rear member of the seat frame and being provided with openings next above said member, a rod extending through the said openings and lying adjacent to the upper surface of the rear member of the seat frame, and sliding connections between the opposite ends of the said rod and the rear legs.

3. In the combination recited in claim 2, a seat element carried by the upper surface of the seat frame and extending rearwardly to a point adjacent said rod and also extending upwardly above said rod.

ALFRED E. PULS. 

